Microsoft's Emma Watch is a game-changer for people with Parkinson's

Mashable

159 d ago

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Smartwatches as they used to be, but that doesn't mean wrist-worn wearables are dead altogether.

Far from it, actually. Take the Emma Watch, a wrist wearable created by Microsoft Research Innovation Director Haiyan Zhang that's designed to help reduce the hand tremors people diagnosed with Parkinson's disease live with.

With the Emma Watch, Zhang was able to help graphic designer Emma Lawton, who has Parkinson's, write and sketch again.

It's this mission to use technology to empower the human condition that is at the heart of everything Microsoft does, CEO Satya Nadella said at this year's Build developers conference.

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A graphic designer diagnosed with Parkinson's disease at 29 has regained the ability to draw and write thanks to a wearable device designed by Haiyan Zhang, Microsoft Research Cambridge's innovation director.

Smartwatch shipments rebounded slightly at the start of this year , but they are still very much niche products. Their biggest potential is in regards to health, from getting everyone to take more steps all the way to helping counter specific diseases. Microsoft’s Emma Watch, probably the most inspiring demo shown off at the company’s Build 2017 developer conference today, falls into the latter category.

The story goes something like this. Microsoft Research Innovation Director Haiyan Zhang spent six months prototyping a wearable that would help her friend Emma Lawton write again. A graphic designer, Lawton was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2013, destroying her ability to do what she loves. The Emma Watch changed that. It does so by sending vibrations that cause Lawton’s brain to focus on her right wrist, reducing the extra signals that cause muscle tremors.

The vibration pattern that works depends on the person, so the wearable is connected to a Windows 10 tablet with an app for controlling vibration speed. For Lawton, a rhythmic vibration is effective. Zhang notes that a more random rhythm may work better for other people.

Lawton now wears the Emma Watch when working on her sketch projects. The wearable has become indispensable when she wants to put a pen to paper.

Zhang meanwhile is working on Project Emma, which would take the wearable to the next level. She is exploring the use of sensors and artificial intelligence to detect and monitor the complex symptoms associated with the disease.

“I’ve been chatting with Emma, Parkinson’s researchers, and experts to put together a deeper piece of research on how AI and wearables can better support people with Parkinson’s to manage their symptoms and medication intake,” Zhang says. “This would be an extension of the original Emma Watch project but could be quite an impactful piece of work. At the moment, it’s still only in the proposal stage.”

Microsoft has created a watch that the company says can help people with Parkinson’s disease write more clearly. The Emma Watch sends vibrations to the brain that help control hand tremors. Microsoft unveiled the watch during its Build conference. It’s only a prototype for now, but it could represent a hopeful step forward in using wearable technology to help those with specific conditions.

Uncontrollable shaking is a common symptom of Parkinson’s, an incurable disease that affects more than 10 million people around the world and causes loss of motor control. The Emma Watch is named after Emma Lawton, a graphic designer with Parkinson’s who’s a friend of Microsoft Research innovation director Haiyan Zhang . Zhang created the watch...

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